Panic Disorder
- Yes, It's Real!
It's a wonderful day and
everything is going great when without warning
you're hit with a panic attack while driving to
work. There's no monster under your seat, no
earthquake opening the road to swallow your car and
no instant terminal illness. Yet you feel wrapped in
total terror and unable to shake it.
You can literally feel your heart twisting in your
chest. Your hands are sweaty and your grip is weak.
Feeling like your head is spinning, you have to pull
over to the side of the road because you're certain
that you're going to pass out.
Chances are you may think you're having a heart
attack and dial 911. At the emergency room, you're
instantly surrounded by heart monitors and the
defibrillator is on stand-by.
Even to medical personnel, you look like a heart
attack about to happen or in progress. Only after
all the tests are in do they realize that what's
really happened is a panic attack. The entire
incident may have lasted only an hour or two, but to
you it feels like an eternity. You feel like a total
idiot!
Panic disorder usually begins in young adulthood,
around ages 18-25. It may begin after a traumatic
event like an auto accident, getting stuck in an
elevator or losing a job. Yet for many of the 6
million people who have panic disorder, there's no
clear reason why it started. One thing is common '
every one of them feels helpless to stop it.
First you need to know that panic disorder is a real
mental health problem, not something that you made
up or use when you want attention. Those are things
other people say to you, but that's not medically
accurate.
Talk to your doctor about what's happening to you.
You may want to learn how to control situations like
this using a form of hypnotherapy, counseling, or
psychiatric medications.
Share what's happening to you with your significant
other, a trusted friend and your boss, if you feel
the confidence will be respected. Panic attacks are
so unpredictable that you need support from family
and friends who can help you reinforce what you
learn during treatment.
You'll learn how to use relaxation, visualization,
breathing exercises and redirected self-talk to
stand your ground against a panic attack. In time,
you will find it easy to manage panic and get back
to doing things without fear of interruption
A lot of people think that deep breathing could not
work for them, that it can't be powerful enough for
their anxiety. Deep breathing can actually be a
great way for those who are anxious driving to get
some quick relief and put their reaction into their
own hands. If you are having anxiety or fear while
driving, you can simply practice deep breathing on
the road, or by pulling off of the road; no other
type of work for anxiety can help you on the spot as
quickly and easily as deep breathing can. st.
How do you jump? You jump by wanting to have a panic attack. You go about your
day asking for anxiety and panic attacks to appear.
Your real safety is the fact that a panic attack will never harm you. That is
medical fact. You are safe, the sensations are wild but no harm will come to
you. Your heart is racing but no harm will come to you. The jump becomes nothing
more than a two foot drop!
Perfectly safe.
